Requiem for an Angel
by Double Moon
Summary: UPDATED! AU Squinoa. Squall is assigned by the Catholic church to assasinate Rinoa to eliminate her as a threat to the Vatican. But what if Squall meets an accident and is tended by Rinoa? Will he still push through with the mision? Read and review p
1. Chapter 1: Requiem Aeternam

Disclaimer: I don't own FF8. Blah blah blah and all that stuff.

Note: This is the prologue for a story I was planning to write. If it receives enough reviews from you and thoughts about how I may continue it, I will. Please enjoy.

Prologue

Requiem Aeternam- _Rest Eternal_

Rain. The soft droplets of water rattled their sweet music on the streets of Vienna, blanketing the entire city in a cloud of water and mist. It was a dark day indeed, and the Catholics of Austria had decided to go about the city in clothes of black to mourn a great one who had recently passed away. In the midst of a crowd, a man who perfectly blended with the mourning citizens slowly made his way towards the church set in the square. He too, was wearing black, but not for the purpose of mourning. Wearing a black leather trench coat, a turtleneck and jeans of the same color, and boots, he maneuvered his way through the sea of people. He shrouded his icy blue eyes from the crowd with a pair of dark glasses. He had finally arrived at the St. Stephen's Cathedral.

A guard greeted him, and he presented a tiny cream-colored envelope with a seal. After allowing the guard to properly examine him, he entered the church. Austria had been mourning the death of the kind archbishop who had established the church into a great institution that found harmony and accord with other religions. He was the one who helped tie and mend relations between the Protestants of Austria and the Catholics. This was the reason why the great St. Stephen's Cathedral was closed off to visitors for the time being. The man slowly examined his surroundings and dipped his hand into a basin of holy water, performing the sign of the cross. Walking towards a bed of candles, he slid a Euro coin out of his pocket and inserted it into one of the slots before lighting a fresh candle and laying it among the many others flickering in the darkness.

The smell of the church invigorated him. The scent of aging marble and incense captivated his senses. He slowly approached one of the pews and knelt down, grabbing a silver rosary from his coat pocket as he began praying. There was a mass going on, and in the distance he saw a choir rehearsing a requiem to be presented for the Austrian public. A priest stood in the midst of it all, delivering the mass in German and Latin.

The soothing chant of the church choir rang through the cavernous chambers of the gothic structure. On the ceiling and the walls of the room were the frescoes of the great Biblical figures, and various statues of angels and saints were aligned perfectly along the aisles. The man could not help but feel calm and collected in the church building. It was a form of art, and it was also a place of worship. He diverted his attention to the choir while reciting one of his prayers.

The choir had begun to sing the requiem aeternum of an Austrian composer's requiem, singing the Latin hymn immediately following the words of the priest.

In German, the aging priest said, "Eternal rest give unto them, O Lord. And let perpetual light shine upon them. A hymn, O God, becometh thee in Zion. And a vow shall be paid to thee in Jerusalem. Hear my prayer, all flesh shall come before you." The brown haired man did the sign of the cross as the choir sang:

"Requiem aeternam dona eis, Domine.

Et lux perpetua luceat eis.

Te decet hymnus, Deus, in Sion,

Et tibi reddetur votum in Jerusalem

Exaudi orationem meam

Ad te omnis caro veniet."

The choir paused and allowed the priest to continue his chants. The last notes of music echoed across the vast chambers of the church, the sound bouncing off the walls perfectly to create a resonant environment of worship.

The priest continued again. "Eternal rest give unto the dead, O Lord, and let perpetual light shine upon them. Eternal rest give unto them, O Lord, and let perpetual light shine upon them."

The sopranos commenced the singing this time, followed by the altos and by the male singers. Soon, their voices overpowered the room again.

"Requiem aeternam dona defunctis, Domine.

Et lux perpetua luceat eis.

Requiem aeternam dona eis, Domine

Et lux perpetua eis."

The man was just about to finish his last prayer when the priest saw him and made the sign of the cross. He then turned to the choir and spoke in German. "You are dismissed for a break. Please come back in an hour."

The choir silently left the room and the priest motioned the man to enter one of the confessionals. He said "amen" and followed the priest, entering one of the dark compartments.

"Guten abend, vater," the man said before making the sign of the cross. (Good evening father)

"Guten abend. You are late. You were supposed to come at five o'clock. Why is it that you arrive an hour late? This is…"

The man interrupted him. "I was busy."

"Still, you could have informed me earlier. I had to extend the rehearsals an hour longer. Do you know that we still have thirteen more parts of the requiem to continue on?" the priest scolded the younger man.

"I don't do requiems. I am not a priest remember?" he cockily answered the priest.

"That is because you are not patient enough my young boy. You never listen to people, your temper gets the better of you sometimes. You are often strong willed, and at other times I wonder how you can still manage to come to church. How on earth can you be a priest?"

"…" The man kept his silence.

The priest rubbed his temples and continued, "I'm sorry for snapping at you my boy, but give it time. You are young after all. Just remember that you have several years ahead of you and once you realize your true calling from Christ, you may be a member of the church."

A moment of silence was shared by the two men before they continued with the conversation.

"What is it that you called me here for?" asked the man.

The priest sighed and slid a kraft envelope underneath a small opening from his side of the confessional. A wax seal with a holy emblem decorated the front of the envelope. "You know your duties and responsibilities as an agent of the church."

"Yes father. Is it another mission to exterminate?"

"I was coming to that," the priest said as he sighed again before continuing. "Yes it is. This is a task commissioned by one of the Vatican's top cardinals, so I urge you to execute it well."

The man grabbed the envelope and opened it, examining the contents of the documents. "So…the Vatican wants me to assassinate a nun in one of our convents in England, am I right?"

"That is right."

"Is there a reason why they want me to kill her?"

"If you read the rest of the document, you will find the details there, but I would rather tell them to you now in a way that wouldn't confuse you. The nun they are trying to target is labeled as an enemy of the church. One of the sisters in the convent reported her possessing natural gifts that seem to be only supernatural. While it is customary for the Catholic church to revere such gifts as coming from God, the cardinal is afraid that this woman may be a practitioner of the black arts."

"Has she done anyone wrong?"

The priest paused for a moment. "Not that I know of, but then…"

"Then is it not a crime to kill an innocent?" he questioned the holy father.

"Yes it is, but the church is being careful. Don't question the cardinal's motives. As much as I oppose against this, I myself do not want to go against the Vatican. They are a force to reckon with, and you know that."

"I am not going to refuse the mission father, as I am a servant of the church. But I do not want to stain my hands again with the blood of someone who has done no harm to anyone."

"I'm sorry I have to put you through this my boy, but this matter isn't something I can easily pardon. It is an order from the highest order of the Roman Catholic Church."

The man looked at the document again and asked, "Does the Pope know about this?"

The priest remained silent. "Does he know about it father?"

The priest shook his head. "The pope is out of this matter. The cardinal who had the mission assigned to you handles the occult affairs that may be considered a danger to the church. If the pope did know, he would have stopped this and asked for a fairer trial for the woman you are to kill."

"Then why can't we inform him? He is after all, the highest of rank in our order."

The priest felt his head pounding. "I am not in the position to bring an order given by a superior to the highest one. I understand your concern, but this is your responsibility so you are obligated to fulfill it."

The man scanned the document again. "How do I know which nun to kill? You didn't even give me a picture to begin with."

"Ah, there is no picture. No one can take a very good shot of the woman's face. No matter how good the photographer, she seems to be able to elude them quite easily. A mystery, don't you think?"

"Indeed."

"You should be able to find her easily though. She has dark hair, pale skin, and brown eyes. She's quite good looking too. It's a pity we have to kill her."

"I see." After a long pause, the man asked, "So how does the church plan to have her killed?"

The priest opened another sliding piece of wood in the confessional and snuck a leather bag underneath. "There is a syringe in that bag filled with a certain substance formulated to kill. If you inject it into the victim, she will spasm and sweat heavily before dying. The substance is expelled into the air through her sweat, so there shouldn't be any trace of it in her body. If they do conduct an autopsy, they will find that she died by a normal heart attack. Nothing more, nothing less. You will also find twenty thousand euros and ten thousand pounds sterling in the bag. It will aid you in the mission and I hope you make the most out of that money. Do not squander it all."

The man nodded and put the bag on his lap.

"So, would you like to confess your sins today?" the priest inquired the man.

The man replaced the contents of the envelope and put it into his pocket. "Of sins, I have many, most of wish I do not wish to confess to one lesser than He who created the universe and me. I hope you understand father, but I would rather not say anything about my personal life just yet. When the time comes, maybe I will. Now is not the time."

The priest smiled and said, "If you want to talk about it anytime, just come by."

"I don't always to go Vienna."

"It was a suggestion."

"Don't you have to do the Kyrie Eleison father?" the man asked, annoyed by the priest's attempt at nosing into his private life.

"I do, but there is someone who needs a friend more than a lifeless shell of a great man whose soul is with the angels. I'm certain he has no need for a song to be sung to deaf ears especially if the choir of heavens are singing to him."

The man shook his head and stood up. "I won't fail the church father, but I hope this will be the last time I have to end the life of another."

"I will be sure to do everything I can to put you out of your position to somwhere where you will find peace. The members of the Austrian church are considering me as the next archbishop. If I am elected, I will certainly help you. If not, I will try my best still."

The man bowed and did the sign of the cross. "Thank you father Cid. God's peace be with you."

" And God's peace be with you too, Squall."

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Squall Leonhart exited the building and called for a taxi. He asked the Middle Eastern driver to take him to his hotel, passing by the several edifices of the elegant, European town square. He drove past the Hapsburg's palace and the Maria Theresa Platz and finally arrived at the building. Once inside, he went to the receptionist.

"Guten Abend Herr Leonhart. How can I help you?"

"I need a plane ticket for England immediately. I am flying tomorrow. Can you refer me to a travel agent?"

"One moment please," the blonde receptionist said as she dialed a number. "When are you leaving sir?"

"Preferably tomorrow noon," Squall said, folding his arms and looking around the lobby.

"I'm sorry Herr Leonhart, but there is only one flight to England tomorrow, and it leaves at fifteen o'clock."

"That will be fine."

"Ok." The woman spoke to the agent rapidly and about two minutes later, received a fax from the travel agent. "Will you be putting this on your bill sir?"

"Yes, please put in on my bill."

The woman typed a few keys in the computer in front of her and gave Squall a bill. "Cash or credit?"

Squall paused to think and said, "Cash."

"That will be six hundred and fifty euros Herr Leonhart." Squall grabbed the leather bag father Cid had given him earlier and searched for six hundred fifty euros. After giving the receptionist the cash, he was given a receipt.

"The ticket will arrive at ten o'clock tonight. Dinner is served in the dining room in an hour, but you may opt to try one of the restaurants here in Vienna. May I suggest the Café Imperial sir? It's only a five minute walk from here. If you like pastries, you might want to go to the Patisserie Demel. They have excellent cakes there and you will like it."

"I will consider that. Thank you."

"Have a good evening sir, and enjoy your dinner."

Squall nodded and entered one of the elevators. Pushing the button "4", he waited for a moment until the elevator arrived at his floor. Finding his way around the maze, he finally arrived at his room and took out his key. Inserting the card into the slot, the door automatically opened and he entered. He checked the room to see if anyone was inside, and thankfully, it was empty.

Squall closed the windows and the drapes, making sure that no one would see him. He opened the leather bag and found a pen inside. Opening its backside and unscrewing it, he found the point of the needle and carefully touched the tip with his gloved hand. He put back the cover and examined everything inside. It looked like a normal office bag, and all he needed was a syringe. How hard would it be anyways?

He opened his file again and looked at the file. "Rinoa Caraway…" he whispered to himself while looking at the file.

He put the contents of the envelope in a closed compartment of the bag and put it into the duffel bag he brought with him. Making sure it was locked, he hid the bag in a section of the room and turned off the lights, locking the door again as he made his way to the lifts.

When he was back in the lobby, he asked the woman for directions to the Café Imperial. Soon enough, he was back in the streets of Vienna and walking towards the Imperial Hotel, a grand edifice created only for the imperial family and its well-treated guests. It was now a symbol of Austria's opulence, and the famous torte served in the café was the emblem of the mastery of the Austrian pastry chef.

Five minutes later, he was in the Café Imperial being served by one of the elegantly dressed waitresses. After being offered a menu, he ordered a cup of Viennese coffee, chestnut torte, and boiled beef, a specialty of the city. When his coffee came, he thanked the waitress and examined the contents of the envelope again.

"Rinoa Caraway…" he thought to himself. "Where have I heard that name before?"

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How did you like this chapter? If you like it, please review. I will make sure that you will enjoy the next one as much as this. This is a Squinoa, of course. The next chapter is entitled "Kyrie Eleison"


	2. Chapter 2: Kyrie Eleison

**Kyrie Eleison**_- Have Mercy_

Author's note: This is a story dedicated to my very faithful reviewers invain, DBZ Fanfiction Queen, Cheerlygal, and Shortie630. I hope you like it as much as I enjoyed writing it.

For the people I may have inadvertently forgotten, forgive me, but I will take note of your names and thank you for your support. You might like Secrets in the Dark by the way, or maybe even The Curse of the Stradivarius. I have this new fic too called Souffle au Chocolat. Lots of fluff and stuff but I'm not sure if I want to continue it. Anyway, enjoy the chapter below.

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Kyrie, eleison!

Christe, eleison!

Kyrie, eleison!

_Lord, have mercy on us._

_Christ, have mercy on us._

_Lord, have mercy on us._

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The plane's PA system was announcing the arrival to London as the vehicle landed in Heathrow Airport's runway. By the time the plane came to a complete stop, Squall stood up and took his bag out of the compartment. He smiled to himself, pleased to know that the people who created his weapons were clever enough to realize that chemicals and sharp objects were often spotted on the airport X-Rays.

As he exited the terminal with his duffel bag, he rushed out among the crowd of people to immigration. After a brief moment of interrogation, he was finally allowed to enter London, England. Squall looked around at the people who were holding placards up to call the attention of some passengers. When he saw his name on one of them, he approached a man dressed in grey slacks and a white shirt.

"Father Martine, long time no see," Squall greeted him.

"Squall, Cid told me that you would be coming to London but I didn't know it would be this soon. So, tell me Squall, where are you headed off to?" the older man asked him.

"I need to find a way to get to the Convent of the Sisters of Saint Agnes. Would you happen to know where that is father?"

Father Martine led Squall to the parking lot where the church's car with its symbol emblazoned on the side was waiting. "As a matter of fact, the Convent was set up by the church I work in, Saint Mary's church. I should have the directions, but if I'm right, I think the convent is situated on the outskirts of London. If you want to get there fast, you could take the train. A trip by car, however, will take only half an hour longer to complete."

Squall looked at his watch and noticed that it was five o'clock. "Well, if I get to your church and borrow a car, I could probably get there by nine."

Martine entered the car and invited Squall inside. "Squall, I personally think it would be better if you left tomorrow. It is getting dark, after all, and the fall weather of London isn't your typical dry leafy season. We get more rain here than most of Europe does, so some daylight on the road would be more helpful. Why don't you leave tomorrow?"

'Because I want to get this over and done with.' Squall rested his head against his hand as they drove to the city. "I'd rather do this now so that I wouldn't have to go through the hassle of maneuvering through London traffic. I'm not used also with driving in the car's right hand side, so I think it would be better that I travel at night so that the traffic doesn't stress me out."

Martine sighed. "If you say so."

Martine turned on the heater and stole a glance at Squall. "So, what brings you here in London?"

Squall placed both his hands behind his head and rested himself against the car seat. It felt strange to be on the left side without a steering wheel. "Mission work," he lied. "Father Cid wanted me to help with the convent as they needed a helping hand."

Without keeping his eyes off the road, Martine ensued with the conversation. "I see. Mission work? I didn't see you as the kind of person who would do missions for the church."

Squall chuckled softly. "And so people say. I get that a lot even from the friars and priests in France."

"Well, you aren't exactly the benevolent kind of person at first glance so I would assume different if the church sent you here. Goodness knows I would think of you as some kind of a bloody secret agent who transfers funds to churches!" Martine said with a hearty laugh.

Squall felt uneasy at what Martine said, because partially, he knew that he was an agent of the church. Only that he, instead of transferring funds, took lives of people whom the church saw as a threat. "Heheh…that kind of life sounds thrilling but it's not for me." 'Not for me indeed…I hope I don't have to do this ever again.'

After half an hour passed by, Squall and Father Martine arrived in St. Mary's Church. He invited Squall over to a simple dinner at his quarters and showed him to his room. It was simple compared even to the cheaper hotels Squall would usually stay in. It was, however, for all its simplicity, a warm and homey dwelling.

"Squall, I understand you're leaving soon. But if you ever need to come to London, I suggest that you come back to our church to stay for the night. I know that not many rental places are open right now so I will be glad to lend you one of my cars. If you would just wait for a moment," Martine said before leaving.

Squall sat down on the bed and sighed. 'I hope whomever this Rinoa is, I get the job done quick so I can go back to Austria or France.'

He rummaged through his pocket again and lifted the silver rosary and began fiddling with the beads while praying. In the middle of one of the prayers, the priest reentered the room. "Squall, here it it…oh, I'm sorry Squall. I didn't realize."

Squall opened his eyes and received a small box from Father Martine. "It's fine. But what is this?"

Father Martine opened the box and gave Squall a key. "That is the key to one of the church's cars. It's not much, since the church isn't incredibly wealthy, so I'm not promising you a sports car."

Father Martine did the sign of the cross before leaving and left Squall in his room. Squall put the key in his pocket and ran to the hall with his duffel bag. He found Father Martine later and said, "Father Martine, would you happen to have the files of the nuns currently serving in St. Agnes' convent? I need to speak to one of them."

Father Martine raised an eyebrow and laughed only a moment later at his request. "This is a convent Squall, not Scotland Yard. We trust our nuns well enough to know that they are doing the work of God."

"Oh." Squall's face looked downcast so Father Martine tried to offer some help.

"Who is this particular nun you are looking for Squall?"

Squall looked up at the priest and answered, "Sister Rinoa Caraway. Would you know her?"

The priest looked away and scratched his chin, trying to register her name. "I'm sorry Squall, but I haven't met a Rinoa Caraway in the convent before. I do frequent it often, but perhaps the one you are looking for is new to the order. Don't worry. The nuns in St. Agnes are wonderfully nice. They will refer you to Sister Rinoa if you ask them."

"Thank you father." And with that, Squall left for the convent.

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About two hours later, Squall was driving an old Volkswagen Beetle down a winding road. After receiving a map and some dried food from the church, he set off for his mission to the English countryside to search for the elusive convent. It was getting dark.

'Maybe Father Martine was right. I should have gone tomorrow.' He swerved his way down a winding hill and turned on his headlights. There weren't any lampposts to light the road, so everything in front of him was pitch black. He stopped for a while to read his map again, and soon enough he resumed his journey.

'Ah, to hell with this mission! If I can kill the target tonight, the sooner I can get rid of this burden on my back.' He continued driving until he found a small gasoline station. He saw a man looking out for vehicles.

"Oy! Oy there! You need a fill for your car?" the man cried out loud. He was a short blonde with a tattoo on his face. Squall stopped the car, realizing that his fuel supply was going to run out sooner or later.

"Thanks man! You are a saver! This countryside doesn't offeh mutsch for mine business so it's bloody great that you stop by! I promise. It's not too costly here. I just need a few pounds to buy me mum and dahd some suppeh for the night."

Squall exited his car and went to the strange little man. "Uh, you can fill it up to full tank can you?" he said in his accented Austro-Germanic English.

"Sure man! Have all the time! Say, you're not from around here are you?" the man asked him.

"Well, no. And you can tell from the way I speak?" Squall inquired the smaller man.

"Yeah. You sound like you coming from Western Europe or somewhere there. Are you German?"

Squall shook his head. "I'm actually French, but I grew up in Austria."

"Oy! Vienna! Always wanted to visit the town. I've loved it ever since I saw the Sound of Music. Julie Andrews…such a great dame don't you think?" he asked him while filling the car up with gas.

"Yeah," Squall mindlessly agreed. "Really something…uh…her acting."

The man laughed as he removed the nozzle and replaced it in its slot. "By the way, me name's Zell Dincht! Dincht of the Royal Knights of England! Ok…maybe not but me great great great granddad served as a knight for the King…King Henry or something like that! I 'ave 'is sword in me room closet and I takes care of it everyday. Oils it till its slick! I keep it in its case too! If you have time again man, be sure to drop by and I takes you to see it! What's your name by the way?"

"Squall. Squall Leonhart. A Knight of the Order of the Jesuits."

"Oy! A church man! Well, God bless your heart and may you find your journey safes me friend! I'll never forgets you for your kindness tonight."

Squall chuckled and entered his car. Before closing the door, he snuck his head out the window and faced the man. "By the way, do you know where Saint Agnes' convent is?"

Zell paused and tapped his foot on the floor. "Saint Agnes…Saint Agnes…Ah! It's another half hour of a drive from here! You have to go through the tiny valley up north about twenty kilometers from me humbles abode and you go just follow the winding road. At the bottom of the two mountains is the convent. Hard to miss!"

"Thank you. I hope you have a good evening. But…uh, I haven't paid yet."

"Oh me plumbs forgots! You truly are a nice man! Honests you really are sir! It's fifteen pounds and thirty-nine pence!" Squall found the English currency in his wallet and gave it to the man. "Safe journeys to you my friend!"

Squall gave him a short wave and continued down the road. Twenty minutes later, he found the valley entrance and began snaking down the winding road.

'This is too easy. I've assassinated so many people before and they put up a hell of a fight. What can a nun do? Drive a blunt cross through my heart?'

He continued down the road until he drove through a dark woody area. As he was driving, he suddenly saw a car flashing high beams at him out of nowhere. With not enough time to swerve his own vehicle to avoid the incoming one, he crashed into a tree, careening out of the car as he landed on branches and shrubs that seemed to tear and gash him. Everything began to grow dark around him, but he could hear two voices in the distance.

"Oh dear oh dear oh dear! Darling, the man is injured!"

The last thing Squall saw before completely losing any sense of awareness was a man making his way through the thick foliage of the forest. And then…blackness.

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"Is he awake sister?" a voice called from a corner of the ward.

His ears could hear the cheerful chirping of birds outside. The scent of the room…it smelled clean and of incense as he slowly came out of his state of rest. He attempted to flutter his eyes open, but the fatigue and exhaustion eventually caught up to him. He just decided to get more rest and listen to the voices.

"No, I'm afraid not. Poor dear, he was found by our caretakers the other day. Sister, do you know who he is?"

"No dear, he didn't carry any identification. No credit card, ID card, or whatever article we may use to identify him. Hopefully, he didn't get amnesia, otherwise trying to find out who he is would be like finding a needle in haystack."

"Sister, please take care of him. Make sure he doesn't move around too much. We can't bring him to the hospital since he has no identification so…just do your hullabaloo or whatever it is that you do. Don't worry. Sister Xu and I will keep mum about this."

Squall heard the door close as two of the women departed from the room. He felt a soft hand lift his arm, peeling the bandages off carefully so as not to hurt him. The next thing that touched his skin was a hot, damp cloth. Squall smiled inwardly at the treatment he was receiving. It felt…nice.

He strained to open his eyes, but his vision was mostly blurry. 'How long have I been out?' he wondered. He could make out the outline of a nun in her uniform, carefully tending to his wounds. They had removed his shirt and he could see the white bands of several yards of linen all over his torso. The woman seemed to look around and as she passed a hand over a large gash over his abs, a luminescent glow emerged out of her fingertips. His vision registered some kind of blue light, but he could have been hallucinating.

A moment later, the woman touched a wound again and did the same, and then another. She found a bandage on is pectorals and removed it, finding quite an intricate set of cuts that seemed to require more attention. Grabbing a cotton ball and soaking it briefly in an alcohol solution, she gingerly dabbed it on the wound.

Squall suddenly cringed and grabbed the hand of the woman who now dropped the cotton on the ground. "Don't! What were you doing?"

"I…I…" she stammered as she tried to release her hand from his grip.

"Where am I?" he demanded as his vision became clearer.

"Th…this…this is S…s.s..saint Agnes' Convent sir! Please, don't hurt me!" she begged him.

"Saint Agnes' Convent? What happened?" he asked her again, trying to get up.

"Please, d…d…don't get up! You'll hurt yourself! You had an accident!" she managed to say.

Squall tried to get up again and when he did, a sharp pain shot through his body and he fell back on his mattress. The nun tried to help him, but he pushed her away.

"Leave me alone!" he shouted at the woman, pointing at the door.

"Y..yes…as you wish!" she said before making the sign of the cross and leaving the room.

Squall's fatigue was getting to him again, and soon enough, he was asleep.

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When Squall opened his eyes again, the sun was just beginning to set. He heard several voices outside his room and found a pair of crutches at the foot of his bed. After what seemed like an eternity in his attempt to stand up, he limped his way to the edge of the mattress and grabbed the two crutches. Balancing himself on the two stainless steel sticks, he carefully made his way outside his room. Closing the door behind him, he saw four nuns and another man playing a game of cards.

"Oh my, someone's cards don't look very good!"

"Yours I assume, are the worst. Face it Irvine, you always lose."

"Well, since I am a natural gentleman, I would always give way to the ladies."

"You are the most…improper church caretaker I have ever met! Imagine a man like you flirting with Sister Selphie! And now you flirt with the whole bunch of us! Away demon! I command you in the name of our Lord, depart the flirtatious demon that resides in this man and bother us no more!"

"Hey! Quit that!"

"I won this time Sister Xu! I told you I would win!" exclaimed one of the nuns who had blue eyes and what looked like wisps of golden hair peeking from underneath her head shawl.

"Ok, you won, but what have you to gain my dear sister? We don't gamble for money! Especially not in the house of God!" cried out the nun beside her.

"Oh, quiet dear about that house of God business. If this really is a house of God, we wouldn't be playing cards!" The entire table erupted in fits of laughter but stopped when they noticed Squall staring at them.

The blonde was the first to get up. "Oh dear! You're awake! You shouldn't be standing dear, you might injure yourself!" she exclaimed as she made her way around the table towards him.

Squall just shrugged her off and sat down on the couch beside the table. "Are you the Sisters of the Convent of Saint Agnes?"

They all nodded silently. "What happened? How long was I asleep?"

A short nun with green eyes explained his situation to him. "Well you see, the other day, the caretaker who is this man to my right was coming along with me to the nearest town to purchase medical supplies to prepare for the winter. We were driving and we didn't realize that you were there, so we turned on our headlights and we have a reason to believe that was the cause of your accident. You swerved abruptly and flew out of your car into a branch-filled area."

When they all couldn't add anything else to the conversation, the blonde said, "You have been sleeping for three days now, and your wounds are slowly healing. We would have taken you to the hospital, but you had no identification so we weren't allowed to bring you there."

Squall sighed and looked up at the ceiling before facing them again. "Who was the one who took care of me earlier?"

Three of the nuns pointed to the sister who averted her gaze away from him. She was still obviously terrified of the way he had reacted towards her that morning. Being a proud, strong male however, Squall made use of his crutches again, his presence causing the crowd to part away from him like the Red Sea did when the Israelites crossed its expanse. He balanced his weight on one of the crutches and placed a hand on her shoulder.

"Thank you…thank you for helping me."

The sister turned around and gasped at his touch. She looked like she had been crying.

"I'm sorry if I hurt you…I wasn't thinking," Squall apologized. 'She is beautiful.'

"That's not a problem sir. I was just doing what the Lord would do if a man like you were injured," she stated plainly as she wiped her eyes with her long sleeve.

"May I know the name of the one who sheltered me and tended to my wounds?" he asked her, his blue eyes peering into the depths of her brown ones.

The nun stammered for a moment as she said, "I…I…I…I'm Julia. Sister Julia Heartilly."

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Ok, since three people like it, I'm updating. If you can increase the reviews to like…twenty, I'll update really really fast. Thanks for your support and the next chapter: Dies Irae.


	3. Chapter 3: Dies Irae

**Dies Irae**- _This Day_

Author's Note: I think this is one of my favorite stories to write recently. I'm infatuated with the idea of it, and can you believe the idea just popped out of my head while I was playing tetris? Haha, you guys should play the game more often. It gives you good ideas. Anyways, about another fic. I'm sorry guys, but I think I'm going to have to end Curse of Stradivarius. Not, delete it, but stop writing until I get some inspiration to write it again. If someone can pull me out of the misery of Curse, maybe I'll write again. As for now, I'll just do Requiem and Secrets in the Dark. And after Secrets…if you really do follow the extensive storyline…well…let's just say that there is something ahead of you, if you know what I mean ;). Enjoy this chapter and the last days of summer!

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Dies irae, dies illa

Solvet saeclum in favilla,

Teste David cum Sibylla.

Quantus tremor est futurus,

Quando judex est venturus,

Cuncta stricte discussurus!

_This day, this day of wrath_

_shall consume the world in ashes,_

_as foretold by David and the Sibyl._

_What trembling there will be_

_When the judge shall come_

_to weigh everything strictly!_

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"May I know the name of the one who sheltered me and tended to my wounds?" he asked her, his blue eyes peering into the depths of her brown ones.

The nun stammered for a moment as she said, "I…I…I…I'm Julia. Sister Julia Heartilly."

Squall managed to bow slightly and mumbled, "Thank you Sister Julia. I appreciate it." With nothing more to say, he limped on his crutches back to the room, closing the door behind him.

They all turned to her now. Quistis was the first to speak. "Julia? Since when did you start adopting your mother's given name?"

Rinoa began fidgeting as she rubbed her shoulder. "I don't know…call it a premonition if you like but…I can't use my name. Not here, not now. He may be just another innocent man but I can't take my chances."

Quistis looked downcast and sighed. "Rinoa, I'm sorry I accidentally said something about your…you know what."

Rinoa walked to Quistis and gave her a hug. "It's perfectly fine Quistis. I know you didn't mean to say anything about it. To be honest, if I saw a fellow sister curing someone with blue light, I'd be talking faster and louder than you did."

Quistis smiled and released herself from the hug. "You know, we are fortunate enough to have the convent to ourselves. God blessed us in a way when he sent the other sisters to do missions work in Bolivia. Now, at least only the ones who know of your um…you know, can be here to protect you."

Selphie walked around the two sisters and drew them into a hug. "Yes! We will protect you! But…um…if someone does attack us, how to we protect Sister Rinoa?"

The auburn-haired man in the corner coughed softly to catch everyone's attention. "Ahem…I believe my ladies have forgotten the masculine presence of my shooting prowess here?"

Sister Selphie rolled her eyes and said, "You? Hah! Irvine Edward Kinneas! You are expecting to be our personal bodyguard? You? You can't even shoot a bird!"

Irvine scowled at the brunette sister and retorted, "For your information woman, I shoot birds and much smaller animals perfectly! I never miss!"

"Cocky…we could have you thrown out of here for being rude to one of St. Agnes' sisters you know," warned Selphie as she put her hands on her waist, looking quite spunky in her nun's uniform.

"I," he said proudly, "am your beloved caretaker. And if anything should happen to you, I will be the first in line, my lady, to brandish my sword of fleeting fire and strike those who wish to oppose my dear girls!"

Selphie scoffed at him and muttered, "Poetry indeed. You are no Shakespeare so stop trying hard to impress me Irvine Kinneas. I've vowed a solemn promise of chastity!"

Irvine winked at her though and said, "Chastity is a vow that can be broken. We are human after all. And I am the epitome of the test for resisting your human desires…dear Selphie."

"Why you! What are you trying to insinuate you…wicked…wicked…"

Rinoa caught their attention this time with an "ahem" of hers. "Sisters…and Irvine…please listen to me. I would much prefer it if you avoided calling me Rinoa anymore. Not until he is gone at least. Will you please remember that?"

They all nodded and Quistis said, "If Julia it is, then Julia you shall be called from this day forth until…um…you know, we never caught his name?"

Sister Xu agreed with Quistis. "If he never suffered amnesia, and I could tell that there is a very big chance that he did not, he will most likely remember his name."

Xu and Quistis looked at Rinoa, who was looking very confused at the moment. "Are the both of you thinking of something that your spiritual minds should be expelling at the moment?" Rinoa asked them both, feeling uncomfortable by the looks they were giving her.

"Rinoa…" Xu began.

"I was thinking…" Quistis continued.

"What if you were the one to ask the man his name?" they both said in unison.

Rinoa sighed. "I thought you were going to suggest something more inappropriate."

"Why would you think that of us?" Xu said, trying to portray an innocent look on her face.

"Because both of you look like you think I'd go further with the man!" she answered her friend back.

"Well why wouldn't you?" Quistis suggested. "He is very handsome you know."

"I'm a nun! I can't fall in love!" she cried out before Xu and Quistis continued torturing her with their teases. Rinoa was beginning to feel like she wanted to zap the two sisters.

"You might not be able to pull through with such a simple task dear Sister Rin…Julia," Xu said with a grin. She was enjoying the fact that Rinoa was reacting quite vehemently to their teasing.

Rinoa clenched her hands and balled them into fists at her side. "Of course I can do that! Why wouldn't I be able to do that?"

Quistis gave her a smirk. "Because dear sister…you're hand is clasping the shoulder which made contact with his hand and…you're blushing."

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The following morning, Squall woke up feeling less pain than he did the other day. In another attempt to rise from the bed, he felt a wincing pain spasm through his back. As he was about to reach for his crutches, he noticed a hand grabbing them and handing the pair to him.

"Please…don't try to strain yourself." It was her, Sister Julia, the nun who had nursed his wounds so tenderly yesterday. She put the crutches beside him and grabbed a stool. Setting it beside his bed she took her seat and looked at him annoyingly. "Do you want to get hurt?"

Squall was taken aback by her question. She seemed like a tough one. "Huh?"

"I said, do you want to get hurt? If you want to keep the pain around for a few more days, you're welcome to walk around the convent in your state of injury."

Squall made another attempt to get off the bed but Rinoa immediately noticed him grimacing. She placed her hand on his chest and tried to support his arm. "I am serious sir, if you don't want to remain in this convent, and I'm sure you have no intention of staying here forever, I suggest you get some rest. You had an accident, and you have several bruises and a few sprained joints. You must lay down on bed and avoid moving too much," she scolded him.

As she tried to help him lay back down, he grabbed her hand and held on to the headboard for a moment. "I'm sorry…my back hurts…but I'm not used to this."

Rinoa sighed and fluffed his pillow for him. "You obviously are an active man, but your lifestyle change shouldn't be an excuse for you to act like a brutish male who wants to show off his masculinity by acting as if nothing was the matter while he should be resting in bed." She carefully placed his injured legs on a pillow set on the end of the bed. Turning around and grabbing something beside his cabinet, she filled a glass of water and presented him a couple of pills.

"Here. Take this. They should help with the pain," she said irritably while administering the medicine to him. She handed him his glass and he quickly gulped it down along with the painkillers.

As Squall sipped the last drop of his water, he couldn't help but feel amused at the way Julia was acting around him. She seemed to be irritated at him, but he didn't know why. Well, at least he had a speculation.

"Are you still mad at me?" he asked her while she was on the other side, making a small bed that seemed to be ruffled by someone.

"Do I have a reason to be mad at you sir?" she answered back. "I think you already know the answer."

Squall scratched the back of his head. "Sister Julia, I sincerely apologize for having shouted at you the other day. I wasn't thinking right."

Rinoa stopped making the bed for a while and laughed. "Men never think right! That's why I'm a nun!" She laughed again and straightened the blanket across the mattress.

"So you're using the church as an excuse to get away from men? What about the work of God?" Squall asked her, obviously finding her an easy target for teasing.

Rinoa whirled around to face him. "Listen! You know what? I serve the Lord day and night, and my life has been peaceful until you came here! I don't even know why I wouldn't give you up to one of the sisters! You are such a nuisance sometimes! Why do I even put up with you?"

Squall smirked and said, "But what have I done, sister Julia, to disturb your peace?"

Rinoa stopped what she was doing and glared at him. "Well, unlike the other patients who sit down nicely and listen to me whenever I treat them, you make things so much more difficult for me, shout at me, push me away, and now you're acting like a complete…bloke!"

Squall looked at her for a moment and mumbled, "I'm sorry Sister Julia. Like I said, I was not thinking right."

Rinoa sighed and sat on the side of Squall's bed, making him uncomfortable with the proximity. Even if she was a nun, she was very beautiful. "Look, I shouldn't be acting this way around an injured man but…please cooperate with me ok?" She touched a hand to his cheek and he could feel himself burning up. "Your injuries are more serious than any other patient I've treated before so please…just get some rest Mr…" Rinoa stopped to think and suddenly giggled. "You know what? I don't even know your name."

Squall breathed in for a moment, pondering on whether he should give his name. "I…I am Squall Leonhart."

"Squall Leonhart…" Rinoa repeated after him. "You know, you have a beautiful name there. What does it mean?"

He blushed slightly at her comment and answered, "A squall is a violent tempest of rain or snow."

"Ah, I see. So what do you do for a living Squall?"

"…I work as a friar," he plainly stated. He suddenly raised an eyebrow when he caugh Rinoa giggling out of the corner of his eye again. "What?"

"I'm sorry Squall…or should I say…Friar Squall. I just never saw you as the kind of person who would do holy work for the church." When Squall looked confused, she laughed again. "First of all, your choice of fashion seems to be quite depressing. You constantly have that irksome frown on your face, and you never seem patient enough to deal with people. It really seems strange at first that you are on the path to priesthood…but if you say so."

Squall shook his head and replied, "I get that a lot from people, and I can't believe you would say the same."

"Well Squall, I was on the receiving end of one of your tantrums yesterday, remember?" she teased him.

"…whatever."

She laughed again and walked over to the bed she was straightening out earlier. "And…you don't talk much. How can you give advice during confessionals?"

Squall turned away, obviously irritated at the nun. "Who are you to judge my life?"

She giggled again, walked to him, and put a hand on his shoulder. "I apologize sincerely friar Leonhart, for my constant teasing and yapping. However, it is imperative that rest to gain back your strength." She walked away and went back to the bed, laying down on it this time.

Squall saw her do so and asked, "Did you spend the night here?"

She turned to Squall, her amber eyes causing a peculiar warmness to emanate from inside of him. "Yes Squall, I did. Why? Does my staying here bother you?"

Squall shook his head. "I just thought you would be sleeping with the other sisters. The bed doesn't look very comfortable."

Rinoa smiled at him. "Why, Mr. Leonhart…I didn't know you cared."

Squall blushed and sat back on his pillow in an attempt to say something. Rinoa laughed again. "You know Squall, you shouldn't try to hold back whatever it is you are trying to say. I for one, like listening to what my patients have on their minds. It helps me to get to know them better."

"…" Squall felt himself heating up. 'Sister Julia is a nun you fool! You can't break the rule of lusting after fellow church people!'

Rinoa looked at the clock on the wall and said, "Well Squall, I must go prepare your lunch now so I'll be outside if you need me. There is a phone beside your bed and if you need anything, just dial 433 to reach me in the kitchen." Just as she was about to leave, Squall called her.

"Sister Julia."

She turned around at smiled at Squall. "Is there something you need Squall?"

Squall pointed to the dresser and said, "I have a black coat there. In the top pocket, can you please get something for me?"

She nodded and opened the dresser, searching the pocket he indicated until she found a silver rosary. She looked at it for a moment and smiled. "It's beautiful Squall. But…I find it quite odd that there is a lion head charm attached to this rosary."

Rinoa handed him the rosary. "I admire lions. They give me a sense of courage. This one lion, in particular, is a favorite of mine," Squall informed her while dangling the beads around his hand, keeping his eyes on the lion. "It's called Griever. I believe he is the King of the lions."

"It's quite nice to see that a man like you admires such things. Frankly…" she said as she opened the door. "…to see a man acting sensitive is very adorable."

Squall's mouth hung open when she said that, and Rinoa couldn't stop herself from giggling. "I'll see you in an hour Squall."

His throat felt dry when he saw her leave. "See you…Julia."

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Squall had just finished his prayer and picked up the Bible beside his bed. Just as he was about to open it, the door opened. His eyes lit up at the prospect of having Sister Julia beside him again. He strained his back to sit up, but Squall ignored the pain. The light in his eyes though, flickered and soon died when he saw another one of the sisters entering with his lunch. It was the blonde from yesterday.

"Hello Squall, how are you feeling right now?" asked the nun as she set the tray of food beside his bed.

Squall felt a grey cloud descending over him. "Better…I guess."

The nun held the bowl of soup to him, handing him a spoon as well. You need this. You haven't had food for three…four days now and you must be weak."

'Funny, I don't feel weak or tired. Maybe my stomach shrunk a bit?' He quietly ate his soup as the nun watched him. "Where is Sister Julia?" he wondered out loud.

The blonde looked puzzled and she uttered, "Sister Jul…oh, I see. She's taking a break right now in the flower fields outside the convent. She needs some rest after all. Didn't you know that she didn't sleep last night watching after you?"

Squall paused and stared into the void before him. "She…didn't rest at all?"

The woman shook her head. "Ri…Julia cares for her patients very much. She is usually a heavy sleeper, but when a patient is being treated, she stays close by to see if they are fine. That woman is such a dear."

Squall continued to eat his soup, feeling the hot liquid sooth his dry throat as the contents were passed into his stomach. He felt a sense of warmth as the food began to fill him up. Soon enough, he emptied the bowl. "She told me she would be here."

The woman took the soup bowl from him and passed a glass of water to him. "So she did, but I saw her in the kitchens earlier. She looked quite tired while she was making this soup for you. I told her to get some rest. She was adamant at first, but eventually agreed when I told her that taking care of you when she is fatigued would not be very helpful for either of you," answered the nun.

Squall finished drinking his water and looked at Quistis. "Is she coming back?"

She smiled at the man laying on bed and answered, "Of course dear."

Squall looked away and a smile began to creep on his lips. "I take it that you like her."

Squall faced the nun with a bewildered look on his face. His cheeks had begun to heat up. "No…it's not that! I meant…"

The sister let out a laugh and sat on the stool beside the bed. "Don't worry…you aren't Julia's first male patient who found her to be very attractive. She is a beautiful woman after all."

"She's a nun," Squall spat back.

"And before she was a nun, she was a lady. Oh come on, we are human too aren't we?" she insisted on Squall. "And if you were wondering, nuns like me are attracted to men too. The only difference is that we have to suppress these carnal desires for the sake of God."

"…"

Quistis laughed as she lifted the tray and began to exit the room. "Would you like me to call her? She can rest here, after all."

Squall shifted his gaze to his feet and kept his silence.

"I'll take that as a yes. She'll be here soon." Quistis closed the door behind him, leaving the man on his bed, dumbfounded once more by the frankness of the nun.

'I really should get out of here before the dear sisters drive me mad,' he thought to himself as he passed his eyes over certain passages of the Bible.

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Rinoa returned to Squall's room after her time alone in the flower field and knocked on his door.

"Come in."

When Squall saw her, he flashed a smirk towards the nun. "You know, knocking wouldn't be necessary if you were the one entering."

Rinoa felt her heart thumping against her rib cage before she answered, "I'm only trying to be polite Squall. Besides, I wouldn't want to accidentally stumble upon you changing into your clothes…" 'Not to mention that you have a really hot body that I am dying to touch! Oh God, forgive me for these thoughts! What do the Italians say to get rid of things like these again? Oh! Va pensiero!'

Squall closed the Bible he had been reading and placed it on the bedside table. "You weren't here earlier."

Rinoa seemed to glide across the room as she stopped at the foot of Squall's bed. "I'm sorry Squall, but I needed some time alone."

"I know…Sister Quistis told me." Squall noticed her taking a warm comforter from a cabinet and carefully placing it over Squall.

"It's getting cold outside," she immediately explained as she passed her hand over the bandages on his chest, her fingertips feeling the toned firmness of his muscles.

The contact sparked a tingling sensation that caused Squall to smile a bit. "You know Sister Julia, despite the pain, I am enjoying this."

Rinoa exhaled loudly and rolled her eyes. "Men…" she muttered under her breath as she covered his flesh with the rest of the comforter. 'I have to remind myself to pray ten times today or I'll sin lusting after him…'

With nothing else to do, she decided to sit on the edge of Squall's bed. "How are you feeling right now?"

Squall turned to her and found himself staring at her angelic visage. "I guess I'm feeling better. I think your taking care of me has improved my condition significantly."

Rinoa looked away and clasped her sweating palms. "Oh…" she mumbled silently.

Squall strained to get up once more. "Squall…what are you doing?" Squall was pushing himself up by holding on to the bed's railings.

Rinoa immediately came to his side and tried to help him. "Squall, please…you're not fully recovered yet. Do you know the repercussions of too much mobility after a serious injury? I don't want you to get hurt."

Squall sighed as he rested his back against the pillow once more, ashamed of his defeat because of the pain coursing through his entire body. "I want to take a walk." He sighed and looked down, causing his silky brown hair to fall in cascades over his face.

Rinoa inched closer to the injured man and brushed his hair away gently from his eyes. "I'm sorry that you are like this, but if you really want to take a walk, you must wait for a few more days. When you are better, I will let you go. We're not trying to keep you prisoner here Squall."

"Don't you think I realize that? Listen, I know that you care for your patients and all that but stop trying to act as if you are in control of what I do!" he said in an accusing tone that seemed to cut deep into Rinoa.

Rinoa immediately stepped back from the bed, her eyes holding an emotionless gaze. Despite the blankness of her face, she was struggling to hold back the tears his painful words had caused. "You're right. Perhaps I shouldn't care too much." Looking away from him, she allowed a tear to roll off.

Squall immediately realized the gravity of his actions and tried to remedy them. He gently wrapped his hand around her wrist and pulled her slightly closer to him. "I'm sorry Julia."

Another tear fell. "Sorry…is that the only thing you would say after you say something that hurtful?" She released another tear, keeping her face away from his gaze so as to prevent him from knowing that she was crying. "I tend to all my patients with love and care. Not once did any of them refuse me. It hurts Squall."

He gently turned her around and felt guilt eating away at him when she saw the tears falling freely from her eyes. "I'm sorry Julia," he said again. He drew her in an embrace, despite the pain that it caused him, and comforted the nun by passing his hand back and forth over her back.

Rinoa pushed herself away from him and went to her small bed. "You should get some rest Squall. If you really want to take that walk, go to sleep and everything will be better in the morning. I promise you that. Then you can go and do whatever you want."

Squall guiltily looked away from Rinoa and sighed, staring at the ceiling as he pulled the comforter over him. 'I am such an idiot.'

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Woo! Another chapter is done! Read and review this one okay? I spent extra time making it good so that you guys would enjoy it. Next chapter: Tuba Mirum.


	4. Chapter 4: Tuba Mirum

**Tuba Mirum**_- Hark the Trumpet_

Author's Note: Thank you once again for writing such supportive reviews. Once again, I'd like to ask most of you if it would be alright to leave a review after you read any of the chapters. Reviews are like water for writers just as applause is for musicians. It doesn't matter if you are not totally pleased with the story. As long as you expound your thoughts on the reviews, that's all that counts, really. To fellow writers who read this, I'm sure you'll understand. Those reviews help us improve to write better stories for your enjoyment. Okay, enough ranting. On with the show!

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Tuba mirum spargens sonum

Per sepulcra regionum,

Coget omnes ante thronum.

Mors stupebit et natura,

Cum resurget creatura,

Judicanti responsura.

_The trumpet, scattering its awful sound_

_Across the graves of all lands_

_Summons all before the throne._

_Death and nature shall be stunned_

_When mankind arises_

_To render account before the judge._

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He ate his dinner in silence, never bothering to meet her gaze as he slowly took in what she had prepared for him. Ever since he had come to the convent, he had pushed away the lingering thoughts of the mission away from his mind. Part of him realized that it was imperative that the mission must be completed, lest he want another agent of the church to come after the elusive Sister Rinoa. Yet, the other half of his conscience told him that it was wrong to take the life of an innocent woman, even if it was an order decreed by the church.

She had avoided looking at him, knowing it would only hurt her more if she exchanged a glance with the only person who had ever refused her help. She silently lifted his dinner tray away from his bed, very well aware that he would look in her direction every time she turned away.

She stepped outside the room, closing the door quietly behind her, leaving the room in a dead silence that seemed to eat away at his guilt. Did he really want to hurt her?

The friar leaned his head against the cloud-like softness of his pillow and exhaled, mulling over his brash actions against the woman who had been nothing but kind to him. Maybe he really didn't deserve her help. Maybe he was destined to be a loner. After all, turning people away was what he did best after his knack for taking their lives.

"I am such an idiot," he repeated to himself again, keeping his eyes on the dead-white ceiling as he began weaving a new plan as to how he can repair the damage done between them. Why did he care anyways? Since when did he begin to care? Did he really have to restructure a bridge of friendship between himself and Sister Julia? She's only a nun. Then again, she was the only one to ever show this much kindness and love to him…ever since that fateful day.

_A short brown-haired boy cried as he ran the rain-drenched streets of Vienna. He did not know the reason why he was in such a hurry to escape what lay behind, but his instincts drove him to sprint as fast as his little legs could take him._

_In the distance, he saw the high-rising, gothic spires of the Saint Stephen's Cathedral. It was an all too familiar sight to the boy as he found a temporary destination for the evening. Just as he was about to reach the entrance, he lost his footing as his foot brushed a slippery cobblestone. He barely had enough time to brace himself for the fall as he placed his hands before him to support his weight. _

_Pain. It was all he could feel as the hard pavement came in contact with his skin. Unable to move, he allowed his tears to fall again. 'Why am I here?' he wondered out aloud as he stared at the empty streets in front of him. It was midnight, and he knew that the only place that would readily open its doors would be this great holy structure before him. _

_He couldn't allow his injury to prevent him from reaching its great doors. He had made it this far, and the church was only a few steps away. He tried to stand up, but the pain was too great. Feeling defeated, he decided it best to crawl to a corner where neither rain nor wet nor stone would bother him for the evening._

_It was then that he found a car parking in front of the church. It was white, and a man dressed in a light blue dress shirt and dark slacks began ascending the steps. A woman in nun's clothing followed him soon after. Both were about to enter the building when the woman saw him sulking in his corner._

"_Dear?" she called to him as she lifted the hem of her robes to avoid the wetness. "It is late at night…don't you have a home to go home to?"_

_The boy shook his head and looked down at his own feet. The nun offered him a hand. "You shouldn't be out this late. If you don't know where to go, we'll take you in for the night."_

_The boy didn't answer her or seem to recognize her presence. His emotional wounds were still fresh. The man who had come with the woman came behind her and talked gently to the boy. _

"_Please young one, it wouldn't be safe for you to stay out in the cold. There will be snowfall tonight and I'd think it would be best if you stayed in the church. I shall have a room for you. It's not the best, but it is warm and you will find better shelter there than out here."_

_The boy let loose another tear as he looked at them both. He tried to get up, ignoring the pain as most young boys like him would do whenever they scraped themselves. His attempt was in vain however, as he whimpered softly when his knees hurt too much._

"_Oh dear, father, he is hurt! Can you carry him inside?" The father gave the nun his bag without another word and lifted the boy into his strong arms. The nun led them inside the church and through a long corridor until they came to a hall of rooms. She fumbled her pockets for a key, and inserted the metal piece into the lock. Leading both men inside, she turned on the light and closed the windows. Walking towards one of the cabinets, she brought out a thick comforter and fresh clothes for the drenched boy._

_They helped the boy change into dry clothing, and gently lay him on bed. The priest watched from the frame of the door as the nun tried to console his troubled soul. She was caressing his forehead as she spoke to him softly._

"_What is your name dear?"_

_The boy's eyelids were beginning to flutter as the nun's gentle touch lulled him slowly to his slumber. "Squall…Squall Leonhart."_

_The nun smiled when he uttered out his name. "Squall…do you know where your family lives?"_

_The boy shut his eyes, trying to search for the existence of his family. He was disappointed when no faces came to mind. "No."_

_The nun seemed to frown at his statement. "Do you…remember your family?" she asked, fearing the question that would receive an answer that she had been expecting all this time._

_Just as he was about to fall into a deep slumber, he tiredly shook his head, and drifted off to sleep. The woman pulled the comforter over him and walked towards the man waiting for her at the door._

"_We must we do?" she asked him worriedly as she watched the young boy's chest rise and fall slowly._

_The man's brows were furrowed as he looked at the child. "We will take care of him as if he were our own child until his family finds him. That is what the Lord would do."_

He had remembered the day he had begun living as a member of the church. The wonderful people who resided there had provided him shelter and food while they could have left him for good on the streets. He couldn't turn away such kindness.

"I have to do something for her," he whispered to himself as he reached out for his rosary and began praying again.

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During the previous night, another one of the sisters had come to his room in place of Sister Julia. After putting him to bed, he noticed that the nun had left in the middle of the night. An hour later, he had gone to sleep.

The following morning, the sister whom he came to know as Quistis entered the room with a breakfast of eggs, ham, and bread.

"Good morning Squall. Is everything better today?" she asked him as she set the tray on his bedside table.

Squall prepared himself for another battle to sit up on the bed, but he was surprised when most of hi s pain had gone away. She was right. He really was going to be able to take a walk. "I think I'm feeling better. My back doesn't hurt so much anymore."

Quistis smiled and handed him the plate of his breakfast. "I'm glad to know you are better Squall. In no time at all, you will be able to resume what you were doing before the injury."

Squall nodded and ate his breakfast quickly and quietly. When he had finished his plate, he returned it to Quistis and decided to ensue one of his rare conversations. "Have you come to replace Sister Julia?"

Quistis was puzzled at his question and gave him a smile. "If you're worried that what happened last night drove her to hand over the job of tending to your injuries to us, you are mistaken. She had to go to the nearest town with Irvine the caretaker to purchase vegetables and a bit of meat for the following week. I was assigned to take over her shift. But don't worry, she'll be back this afternoon."

Squall looked guiltily at his own hands, wishing that they hadn't pushed her away like that. "I didn't mean to talk to her that way."

Quistis sighed and gave Squall a sincere look, also trying to decipher the expression on his face. "If you feel that you have wronged her, then you should apologize to her."

"I did, but she refused my apology."

Quistis gave him a consoling smile, placing her hand on his shoulder. "Squall, sometimes apologies aren't immediately accepted by women. Sometimes, you have to add something extra to make it slightly more exciting. You might want to do something for her. Write her something if you want. I assure you, she always has accepted whatever it is that her patients give her."

Squall attempted to move his legs, shaking himself off the bed as he got up on the floor. Upon contact with the ground, a familiar pain shot through his legs, but Quistis was there to hold him up. "Squall! Friar Leonhart! What are you doing?"

Squall was seething through his teeth as the pain battled against his will. "I'm taking a walk!"

Quistis was panicking as she handed him two crutches to prevent him from doing any further damage to his sprained muscles. Holding one of his arms to help support him, the tall blonde used what strength she had to keep him from falling. "Friar, this isn't worth it! If you keep exerting that much effort on your muscles at this point, you will only end up being hurt more! Do you honestly want to lock yourself up in this convent for eternity?"

He stood himself up on the two crutches, limping quite impressively for a man who just recovered from his injuries. He quickly made his way to the door. "I need to do something. Please don't stop me!"

Quistis ran behind him and tried to hold him up again. "If you're looking for Sister Julia, she isn't in the convent!"

Squall ignored her and continued walking towards an exit that seemed to lead him towards a field of flowers. "I'm not looking for Julia," he plainly stated as he continued to limp. He let pain defeat him once. That won't happen again.

"Squall, please listen to me. I don't think your muscles can take the pressure of walking just yet!" she frantically told him while still accompanying him. 'I wonder how Rinoa puts up with this man. If only he weren't handsome…I'd let him be.'

Finally, outside, Squall took in a breath of the fragrant countryside breeze and sat down on a bench. Quistis was there, still too shocked that he was able to leave the building without furthering his injuries.

She held her arms akimbo on her waist and gave him a smirk. "Well, I must say Friar Leonhart, I am impressed. None of the patients before have ever attempted to exit the building and gone outside before their first week of recovering in the convent."

Squall didn't reply as he gazed at the vast expanse of blooming flowers before him. It truly was a beautiful sight, and it was no wonder to him that Julia loved coming out here. He was curious though, about the origins of the convent. He had never heard of it until now, and the place seemed perfect for situating such a religious place. "Tell me Sister Quistis, how did this convent come to be?"

Quistis descended on the bench beside him and looked into the gorgeous sight before her. There seemed to be a blank look on her eyes as she began retelling the convent's story. "About twenty seven years ago, the building you see behind you was not a convent. It was actually the house of a woman who lived in the countryside. There was a woman named Raine who lived there, and since the region is a transitory area between London and another busy city up north, she would usually nurse the people who were hurt in the area. Together, she, a family known as the Dinchts, and a few other townspeople decided to use the area as a rest stop for travelers to gain income for the town. Since Raine was living alone, she decided to turn the house into a convent for nuns who not only did religious work, but medical work as well. Two years passed, and more nuns from all over the country and certain parts of Europe came to this convent since it was placed in such a wonderful location. You could imagine that this place seems to be more laid back than London. Anyways, Raine called it the Convent of the Sisters of St. Agnes for two reasons. First of all, Saint Agnes was a woman beatified in England as a saint for nursing the sick and helping the weary. People say that she spend her last days in this obscure area, but that's not the bulk of it. What I heard is, Raine is actually a member of Agnes' family, giving her the inspiration to give this convent the name of her great great great great grandaunt."

Squall found himself drawn by the story of the convent's beginnings, and found Raine's name to be quite familiar, although he was not quite sure where he had heard the name before. "Is she still here?"

Quistis turned to him, puzzled by his question. "Who she? Do you mean Raine?" Squall nodded and she explained, "Raine was once the caretaker of this convent. One day, a man was traveling down the very same path that you took and was somehow injured in an automobile accident. The Dincht family found him and sent him here, where Raine took care of him since the rest of the nuns, oddly, were sent at the time to do mission work elsewhere. Déjà vu if you ask me. Anyways, they both fell in love and somehow, the man was able to talk Raine into following him to wherever it is that he came from. That was the last we ever heard of her. We've had at least three caretakers in the convent since Raine left, the latest being that brute of a pervert Irvine Kinneas. Although I can't complain much about having a male caretaker since there are a few people who come to rob the church. He could easily drive them all away with his rifle."

Squall ruminated upon all that she had said, and found one of the names to be very familiar. "Dincht…the Dincht family that you speak of…do they have a boy named Zell?"

Quistis laughed and said, "Well, now that you mention it, they do have a boy called Zell. His parents still come here to donate medicine to the convent whenever they can. Why? Do you know Zell?"

A slight smile appeared on Squall's lips when he remembered meeting Zell during that fateful night. "No, but I did meet him on the way here. He offered to fill my car with gas. He seems to be…extremely happy."

She laughed when she understood what he was trying to say. "He is indeed. His parents are German-Jews who moved here after the war. They've been helping the convent ever since and despite the success of the father's automotive business, they never found a good enough reason to leave this town…God bless their hearts for their benevolence."

Squall focused his attention on the fields again when an idea came to mind. "Sister Quistis, when is Sister Julia coming back?"

Quistis caught herself in a daze when she replied, "Sister Julia…who? Oh! She's coming back in about four hours. She usually buys a few medical supplies on the way so it would take her slightly longer to get back to the convent. Why do you ask Squall?"

Squall had a boyish grin on his face. "I have an idea."

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Rinoa returned to the convent after purchasing the food needed to sustain the sisters, Irvine, and her ever so stubborn patient. On the way, she noted to herself that she ought to purchase a few yards of linen bandages and plaster and other medical supplies in case a certain friar was stubborn enough to do what a recovering patient wasn't supposed to be doing. After all, they were running out of medicine.

She was just about to enter his room when she remembered what he had said to her last night. It hurt her again to think about it, but she decided to push it all away. What was the use of pondering upon such useless things anyways? She knocked on the door twice.

"Sister Julia, I want to remind you that knocking isn't necessary if you're the one behind the door," called a voice from inside. 'How did he know?' she wondered as she closed the door behind her. He was behaving in bed, reading his Bible when she entered. He looked up at her.

"I was being polite friar," she dryly told him. "Knocking is an absolute necessity. It's protocol too. You should know that." She didn't look at him as she filled a glass of water and brought it to him, still keeping her gaze away from him.

He noticed that she had reached out for a few pills beneath the cabinet, giving him a tablet so that the pain wouldn't bother him anymore. After mouthing a silent thank you, he gave her back the glass. She still wouldn't look at him.

"Get some rest…you'll need it," she seemed to order rather than suggest. Her tone had changed from sweet and gentle to bitter. "You'll be out of here soon. The sooner the better, am I not right?" she questioned him sarcastically.

As she was just about to walk away, Squall stretched his good arm and pulled her closer to him, reaching out from under his pillow and shoving something quickly but gently into her hand.

Rinoa was surprised by his sudden actions when she felt the vehement pull toward him. She was going to get into another argument with him when she looked down and saw a bouquet of flowers…very beautiful wildflowers.

His eyes seemed to be begging her forgiveness, and he contorted them is such a way that even Mother Teresa wouldn't be able to resist him. "I'm sorry Julia. I was being selfish. I should have considered your feelings more…forgive me?"

Rinoa stared in shock at the rainbow of petals as a smile crept into her lips. She wanted to thank him, but part of her told her to listen to what more he might have to tell her. She remained silent, yet attentive. "I've been proud and inconsiderate of your kindness, and you're the only one to shower me with this much attention. Please Julia…don't stay mad at me."

Rinoa couldn't resist touching his cheek gently with her fingers. "I won't stay mad, as long as I know that it's sincere Squall." She sighed contentedly and walked around the bed, setting the flowers in a water-filled vase. "They're very beautiful. Thank you. It's the first time anyone has ever presented me something like this."

She unconsciously sat on his bed, his arms only millimeters away from her back. He had this longing to hold her…yet he couldn't. He couldn't possibly do this to such a woman for everything that had done…even more so for what she lived for. "You see them everyday in the flower fields…how could this be any different?" he inquired her, wondering why these flowers seemed so special. It was, after all, only a sincere apology.

Rinoa knelt down and clasped his hand gently in hers. "Flowers are flowers. They are beautiful in their own respect, but their true beauty comes in full bloom if it is given to you from someone who cares."

His hand slowly moved to touch her face. She didn't seem to want to stop him, so he continued further on, unaware that she was thinking about something at the moment. It was then that it happened.

She slapped him. It wasn't very strong, but it caught him by surprise, however. "Ouch! What was that for?"

She rolled her eyes and started berating him again. "You went out to the flower fields didn't you?"

Squall held his cheek firmly, still feeling the sting of her blow. "I…I…"

"Where else would you have gotten these flowers? I don't think any of the sisters would have done this for you? Squall! I've told you so many times before! You're injured! If you had gone out, you could have made the injuries more severe! What were you thinking?" She wanted to grab his crutches and throw them into the river so that he couldn't use them.

Squall remained speechless, shocked that a nun would slap him in the face. "If you were ever injured again, I'm serious with this but I'll ask another one of the sisters to take my place!"

Rinoa shook her head and did something that took Squall by surprise. She hugged him. Slender arms wrapping around his neck, she softened her tone and spoke to him. "But thank you for the flowers…they really made me happy." Squall was dumbfounded and wide-eyed as he could only return the hug.

She pulled away from his embrace and sat once more on the edge of the bed, keeping her hand on Squall's. To his surprise, she let it stay there. "Squall?"

"Yes?"

"Did you really mean what you said earlier?" she asked him, looking directly at his azure pools as if they were the source of her answers.

He closed his eyes and nodded, turning his palm over to hold her hand. "I wanted to write it to you but…unfortunately my hand is not strong enough to grip a pen yet."

She suddenly realized their proximity and pulled away to Squall's disappointment. Despite her feelings for him, she reminded herself that she was a nun and couldn't get involved with a man. "As long as you are sincere Squall, I don't care if you write it in giant letters or have some plane write it in smoke."

Rinoa stood up and set the vase on his bedside table. Looking at them, she tilted her head slightly. "You know, I'd like to go picking flowers some time. Care to join me if you're well?"

"We can go now, if you want to," he suggested as he propped himself up from bed, thankful that the painkillers were quickly acting on his nerves.

"Squall…"

"If you have a wheelchair, I'll be fine."

Rinoa giggled and sighed. "Oh fine…if it will silence your whining, I will get you a wheelchair." She left the room and reappeared about five minutes later with what Squall had requested.

"I'd have to get you a blanket for the cold outside though. Your arms aren't ready to stretch to accommodate your coat sleeves, so I'll get something to cover you up." She walked to her all-purpose cabinet and found a blue blanket and placed it on top of the wheelchair. 'Not to mention it will cover your extremely nice abs…and not to mention the rippling chest and those arms….oh dear, what am I doing? Rinoa! Enough of these thoughts!'

She brought the apparatus beside him and he gingerly set his foot down on the floor. It surprised him that it didn't hurt so much as it did this morning. He set the other foot down, and when they were both on the floor obeying his every command, he smiled contentedly to himself. Rinoa came up in front of him to help him up, and soon he was standing again, with "Sister Julia" as his crutch of course. As he was about to place himself on the wheelchair, a pain shot through his back as he groaned out loud, causing his sense of balance to suffer as he fell…on top of her.

Of course, the fall would never be complete without a Kodak moment. There he was on the floor, his body on top of hers, his lips separated only by an extremely short distance…too short for his or her comfort. Naturally, Sister Quistis and Sister Selphie would find the perfect moment to come in.

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Tada! Finished! I hope you like this one. I had fun writing this chapter so please read and review! Your reviews mean a lot to me. If you don't like it, then go ahead and say so!

The next chapter is coming up: Liber Scriptus! Hang on there, I promise I'll update!


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